26 year old single male starting a weight loss plan

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Thoth8
Thoth8 Posts: 107
in Introduce Yourself
I've been overweight for nearly 10 years (started while I was still in the USA). I've been on various diets, I even went on a 30 day fast once (had to stop after 10 days to take a medication to battle a skin reaction that spread all over my torso) and nothing seemed to work. So I made myself a new diet plan now, it will last 25 weeks, the goal is to lose around a kilogram per week (2.2 pounds). I'm building the diet based on information i learned from Brad Pilon from Eat Stop Eat and Joel Marion with his cheat day technique. I'm pretty much combining the two. My basic plan is this:

Monday: Low carb - rest
Tuesday: Generally healthy (starchy carbs from sweet potatoes, lentils, or oatmeal only) - bodyweight str training + HIIT sprinting

Wednesday: generally healthy - rest
Thursday: cheat day - eat whatever i want except for unnatural trans fats and MSG - bodyweight str training + hiit sprint
friday fast - rest
saturday : fast - bodyweight str training + hiit sprint
sunday: fast - rest

I'm having a whole protein source per meal, fish, strained yogurt, eggs or meat a different one per meal, raw veggies will be at every meal... lentil soup stew will be on the menu on the generally healthy days. Low carb means for me no starches, but definitely 2 raw veggies per meal (a cucumber and some radishes for example)

I never eat anything with hydrogenated fat anyway, but it's banned from this diet, as well as MSG.(even on cheat days)
I may have a bottle of vegetable juice with a handful of almonds as a snack if I feel hungry. (only once per day)

On days that I am eating, I will have 3 square meals a day with a possibility of the above mentioned snack if i get hungry.

I am thinking about changing sunday from a fast day to a low carb day to reduce mental stress (it's hard for someone who loves to eat to stay away from foods).

I know some people will think fasting is unhealthy, but... in comparison to how I've eaten for the last 5-6 years (50% junk food) I'd say it's still a step up.

Anyway, I'm looking for mental support is all, as an Aries personality, I start things easily, but have trouble finishing them.

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  • faithyin
    faithyin Posts: 2
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    Hey,

    Sounds like you've got a great/detailed plan worked out! That is always a mark of dedication (: Feel free to add me if you want! I'm trying to be online often to log my food intake/exercise (it's easy because I have the app on my phone).. and it's been great receiving and giving comments/encouragements to my friends!

    I'm no nutritionist or anything, but that's a lot of fasting! Adding exercise on top of that.. You just need to make sure that you don't faint and that you're not starving yourself. One thing I have learned (I minor in Kinesiology) is that this weight loss plan isn't just a temporary plan to lose weight and get to the goal weight you want... A lot of people think that when you reach your goal weight, then you're safe to go back to your old routine and just make sure you don't get overweight again. The majority of these people are bound to be a victim of yoyo-dieting and gain back more weight than before. No..This is going to be a life change! It's learning to break bad habits like bumming around on the couch or eating chips/drinking soda every day. It sounds like with this plan, you'll definitely reach your -2.2pounds per week goal, but just be sure to take good care of yourself first.

    You might find your body losing lots of weight in the first few weeks, and then plateauing because your body is realizing food is scarce and hold on to every calorie/fat molecule to conserve energy. So if you plan on sticking to this, maybe come up with some way of "tricking" your body so that it's not going to plateau your weight loss plan!

    You can do it kanifer! Good luck!
  • jerbear1962
    jerbear1962 Posts: 1,157 Member
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    I was thinking that 3 days of fasting may be a bit much but you have to do what works for you...under doctor orders I had to give up all starches. When he told me I was thinking he's nuts because my whole menu was starches. I left his office headed home to see what all I needed to buy to replace my foods. I bought all natural fruits, vegetables, lean meats and haven't looked back. Good luck with your plan and add me as a friend if you like.
  • sirmio
    sirmio Posts: 44 Member
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    faithyin has excellent advice. I just want to emphasize the lifestyle change thing. Your diet looks great to me, though I'm no doctor, but you should be honest with yourself through the process. Listen to your body, if you're hungry and you aren't recovering well from your workouts, you're likely not taking in enough calories.

    There are also healthy, but delicious snacks out there. One of my new favorites is something I saw on the Food Network on Symon's Supper (or something like that). He grills peach halves and then fills the center with a spoonful of 0% fat Greek yogurt. Then he sprinkles a little granola on top (though I've used chopped walnuts, pecans, and/or slice almonds) and drizzles it with just a little bit of honey (I usually use raw agave nectar). Low cal, nutritious, and tastes like desert!
  • Thoth8
    Thoth8 Posts: 107
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    oh wow, this forum is more active than I expected, thanks for the replies!

    @faithyin: yes it is a lot of fasting! I've done 10 days before, so I am not too worried about 3 days. and it's actually not a complete 3 days,but rather 2 days and 3/4, I'm adding a low carb meal (salmon+raw veggies) on the evening of the 3rd day. As for the plateau, yes, you're correct, that's the purpose of the cheat day, according to Joel Marion, on the cheat day (if you eat high impact starchy carbs like white pasta) the hormonal plateau gets resetted.

    @jerbear yes, I may change it to 2 days if I find myself losing weight too fast after the first week. I'm trying to stay away from fruits except for cheat days actually, fruits aren't like the original healthy wild fruits they used to be. supposedly they have much more fructose and 500% less antioxidants than they used to as well as more flesh and less skin (the skin has most of the fiber and vitamins). of course today's fruits TASTE better i suppose...I've never tried an original wild fruit before.

    @sirmio yes, if everything pans out, I will modify the plan to 2 low carb , 3 generally healthy, 1 cheat day, and 1 fast day for life after i get to my ideal weight (or within 5 kilograms of it)
  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
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    I honestly don't know why you would include a 3 day fast when it's perfectly achievable to lose without it, I think you a making your life waaaay tougher than it needs to be.

    I'd not saying it's unhealthy, just completely unnecessary.

    I think you will find this extremely hard to stick to, but good luck to you
    I start things easily, but have trouble finishing them.

    This is part I'm worried about, why not just eat a calorie controlled diet 7 days per week with sensible macros?
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    I wish you the best of luck, but my honest opinion is that you are over-complicating things. You don't have to worry about this starting and never finishing phenomenon if you never start a diet. Just adopt a new lifestyle. It sounds cliche, but it's the way to long term success.
  • Thoth8
    Thoth8 Posts: 107
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    hi taso and hendrix, thanks for the input. part of the reason for the fasting is for health reasons and cleansing (my previous diet style was 50% junk food - you might even go so far as to call it a junk food addiction) I'm hoping the fasting can cure me of it.

    Yes, it's mentally a bit daunting to fast, but my body doesn't have any problems with short fasting as long as I chug plenty of water. (had 4.5 liters yesterday <3.7 liters is a gallon>)

    if i find it too hard, I will replace a fasting day with a low carb one
  • Thoth8
    Thoth8 Posts: 107
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    @taso yes, there is a long-term plan for after the 25 week one - the exercise days are to stay the same, and I'll keep 1 fasting day, and replace the other two with a generally healthy and a low carb day.

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